Opposites Attract
by Phoenixes-And-Wizards
Summary: They were six total strangers, with nothing in common, meeting for the first time. A brain, a beauty, a jock, a recluse, a rebel, and a musician. Before the day was over, they broke the rules. Bared their souls. And touched each other in a way they never dreamed possible.
1. PROLOGUE

**A/N: **Hello again, fellow fans of John Hughes' legendary work of art: 'The Breakfast Club'. So, I was bored the other day and decided to do this. As always, I am _begging _for you guys to review, comment, or favorite. Thank you and have a merry Christmas! I love all of you to bits!

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own this work of art. Nor am I in touch with the stars, namely, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez, or Paul Gleason. But, I wish I was.  
RIP: Mr. John Hughes. Same goes to Mr. Paul Gleason. Both of you are greatly missed. Well, at least by me.

*puts three fingers to lips, raises them in the air*

**PROLOGUE:**

_Saturday, March 24, 1984  
Shermer High School,  
Shermer, Illinois, 60062_

Dear Mr. Vernon,

We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong. What we did was _wrong. But, we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. What do you care?_

You see us as you want to see us: A brain, an athlete, a basket-case, a princess, a musician, and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at 7:00 this morning.  
We were brainwashed.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

*_Ariel's P.O.V.*_

When I walked into the library on March 24, 1984, everybody was already there. Including, Mr. Vernon, our principal. He seemed to be in the middle of a speech when my arrival interrupted him.

"Well, well, well, Ms. Crush. I'm glad you decided to join us," he said pompously, making John Bender, the school rebel, roll his eyes and train his gaze on me. When he caught me staring at him, he winked flirtatiously. I don't have a thing for bad boys, but there was just _something _about that wink that made me blush a little.

"Don't just stand there! Pick a seat," Mr. Vernon ordered gruffly, motioning to the six tables in front of him. I assessed my options:

I didn't want to sit between Claire Standish and Andrew Clark, even though I'd had a thing for him for the past 3 years. They were too popular and would probably start intimidating me the minute Mr. Vernon left us here. Bender's table was out of the question too. He had been a jerk to me since the start of the school year, even though he and Andrew were a year above me. It was like he went out of his way to make my life a living hell. Which it already was, thanks to my step-father who beat me often when I didn't practice my instrument enough.

Unexpectedly, I caught Brian Johnson's eye, and since I didn't want to grab a seat at Allison Reynolds' table, I smiled back at him.

I made my way over to him and pulled out the only empty seat at his table (his bag was sitting in the middle chair).

"Can I sit here?" I asked him in a low whisper.

He just nodded and smiled shyly at me. I took that as a 'Yes' and plopped down unceremoniously into the chair. When I'd finally settled into it comfortably, Mr. Vernon, who had been waiting for me, resumed his speech.

"Well, well, here we are. I just wanted to congratulate you all for being on time, with the sole exception of Ms. Crush," he said, glaring at me. I bit my lip and ducked my head. What can I say? That man was just plain creepy. I mean, I once caught him looking through an issue of _Playboy _with his hand adjusting his 'friend'.

But, then again, all of the boys here at school did it. Even the teachers.

Claire, who had been looking pretty uncomfortable for the past three minutes that I'd been here, raised her hand and looked Mr. Vernon in the eye.

"Excuse me, sir? I know there's been some sort of confusion here. I know its detention and all, but I feel like I don't really belong in this situation."

Mr. Vernon just ignored her.

She looked around, searching for a face that seemed to be supporting my opinion. I saw Brian desperately trying to catch her eye as well. When her eyes met mine, I shrugged and made a face at Mr. Vernon. Claire surprisingly smiled a bit and turned her attention back to what Mr. Vernon was saying.

"It is now," he checked his watch, "seven o' six. You have exactly eight hours and fifty-four minutes to think about why you are here. To ponder the error of your ways, so to speak."

I made the mistake of looking back at John.

He threw his head back and hawked spittle out of his mouth, catching it again a few seconds later. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Claire make a face as well. She wrinkled her delicate nose pointedly and muttered something along the lines of 'Yuck!' For once, I agreed with the 'Princess'. Yuck indeed.

Mr. Vernon didn't seem to notice anything.

"You may not talk," he said with a pointed glance at Claire, who had just finished coughing. I bit back the urge to point out that she hadn't talked. She'd just coughed. But, since I didn't want to get another detention, I just kept my mouth shut.

Brian made to get up, but halted when Mr. Vernon turned his gaze on him.

"You may not move," he ordered, making poor Brian sit back abruptly in his former seat. I threw him an apologetic glance and he just nodded.

Mr. Vernon started to hand out sheets of lined paper and Number 2 pencils, giving two to Brian for him to pass the extra to me. When he reached Bender's row, he yanked a chair out of Bender's feet, jolting him out of his comfortable position.

"And _you _will _not _sleep."

When he'd finished handing out the sheets of paper and pencils, he walked over to the front of the classroom.

"Alright, people. We're going to try something a little different today. We're going to write an essay-of no less than a thousand words- describing to me who you think you are."

"Is this a test?" Bender asked in a bored voice, twirling the pencil between his fingers.

As usual, Mr. Vernon ignored him.  
"When I say essay, I mean, _essay_. Not a single word written a thousand times. Is that clear, Mr. Bender?" he asked in a serious tone. But, then again, the freak was always serious.

"Crystal," Bender shot back easily.

I made a little mental note to use the comment later when Grandpa picked me up. I was pretty sure I'd find a use for it.

In the front, Mr. Vernon was still blabbering on and on.

"Good. Maybe you'll learn a little something about yourselves. Maybe you'll even decide whether or not you'd care to return."

Brian, being the geek he was, stood up as if to answer. I was right.

"I could answer that right now, sir. That'd be no. No for me because…"

"Sit down, Johnson," Mr. Vernon said contemptuously.

"Thank you, sir," Brian answered.

When Brian had settled in, Mr. Vernon pointed to the open door and back to us.

"My office is right across that hall. Any monkey business is ill-advised. Any questions?"

Me, Claire, Andrew, Brian, and Allison (maybe) shook our heads.

Bender, on the other hand, raised his hand mockingly.

"Does Barry Manilow know that you raid his wardrobe?"

I saw smiles form on Andy's, Claire's, and Brian's faces, making me snicker a little as well.

"You'll get the answer, Mr. Bender, next Saturday. Don't mess with the bull, young man. You'll get the horns."

Without another word, he left, leaving us there to start our essays.

"That man is a brownie hound."


	3. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2:**

"That man is a brownie hound," Bender said, nudging his head in the direction Mr. Vernon had disappeared in.

I just ignored him and set to work, shoving my hair behind my head so it wouldn't cover what I was doing.

Beside me, Brian was repeatedly putting his pen into his mouth, making the top enter his nose.

"Who do I think I am? Who are you? Who am I?" he muttered, still trying to shoot the pen into one of his nostrils. "I am a walrus."

I stopped working and turned to him with an amused look on my face. "Please elaborate why you are a walrus," I said, starting to laugh a little. He blushed and held the pen in front of me. "Well, this represents the tusk that hangs from a walrus' nose. So, yeah. I'm a walrus," he explained not-so-clearly.

I just nodded and turned my attention back to my own paper. Brian was still trying to convince himself that he was a walrus. It was starting to get annoying, since I couldn't come up with anything what with the ruckus he was making.

"Will you shut up?" I said as nicely as I could without making it obvious that I was starting to get pissed. Unfortunately, I said it a little too loudly. Claire's head whipped around, casting me a seething glare. "Do you mind?" she asked in an annoyed tone. I just shrugged and started to brainstorm for ideas.

Bender, on the other hand, seemed to have set his heart on pissing off just about every living being in the room. He crumpled up his paper, poised to aim, and threw it in the direction of Claire's and Andy's table. When he missed, he shrugged and started to play on his air guitar. Real loudly.

"I can't believe this is happening to me," Claire said, tapping her pencil on the paper.  
"Uggh! Give it a rest, will you?" Andy said, brow furrowed and face set in a determined expression.

Just then, Bender groaned dramatically and everybody's head whipped around to look at him.

"Oh, shit! What're we going to do if we have to take a piss?" he said a little too innocently for my taste. I could see everybody's eyes widen in horror, making Bender smirk. He unzipped his pants and leaned forward so we couldn't have a decent view of his 'friend'. Not that I wanted to see it anyway.

"If you gotta go, you gotta go," he said while shrugging. Claire turned around in disgust, her delicate features scrunching up in disgust. "Oh my god," she muttered under her breath. Andy, on the other hand, was taking things a little too seriously. "Hey! You're not urinating in here, man," he hissed, eyes blazing and face set in an annoyed mask.

Bender shook his head and stage-whispered back, "Don't talk. Don't talk. It makes it crawl back up." Andy clenched his fist. "You whip it out and you're dead before the first drop hits the damned floor," he said again.

John zipped his pants up and gasped mockingly.

"Hey, homeboy," he said to Brian who had been watching the little scene unfold in shocked silence, "Why don't you close that door? We'll get the prom queen _and _the music freak _impregnated."_

"Hey!" Andy shouted. "Hey!"

Bender raised his eyebrows at him. "What?" he asked, slightly annoyed.  
"If I lose my temper, you're totaled, man," Andy threatened. His fist was shaking a little.  
"Totally?" Bender asked in mock surprise.  
"Totally!" Andy agreed.

I sighed and stepped in, not wanting a fist fight to ensue.

"Both of you, shut the hell up! Nobody here's interested!" I snapped, glaring at the both of them.  
"Asshole," Andy muttered, turning back to the front.  
"Well, hey, 'Sporto'. What did you do to get in here? Forgot to wash your jack?" Bender teased further. It was clear that the dude _was _an asshole. He just didn't know when to shut up. I nudged Brian in the ribs. Thankfully, he understood. "Hey, fellas. I think we should just write our papers," Brian intervened, raising his hands as if communicating in a foreign language that needed hand gestures. "Look, just because you live in here doesn't mean you have the right to be a pain in the ass. So, knock it off!" Andy snapped at Brian, glaring at Bender at the same time.

Claire whispered something in Andy's ear, probably to calm him down, but he didn't listen.

Bender, who'd started to lose interest in Andy the minute he snapped at Brian, turned to me.

"What about you?" he asked with a nod in my direction.  
"What did _you _do?" I asked testily, starting to get annoyed with the bickering.  
"That's none of your business," he said, his lips pursed.  
"Well, same goes to you," I said, turning around again to write something down.

Apparently, Bender wasn't finished. He was just getting started.

"It's a free country," Bender countered. Then, he cleared his throat. "So, uh, are the four of you, like, boyfriends and girlfriends?"

Me, Andy, Brian, and Claire looked at him.

Allison, on the other hand, was still lost in her own little world.

"Steady dates?" Bender continued. "Lo-vers?"

Andy's hand was curled into a fist again. And so was mine. I was starting to get pissed and I wanted nothing more but to pound this asshole. "Just forget it," Brian whispered under his breath, taking my hand and uncurling the fingers gently. He held my hand for a minute longer than was necessary and let go, blushing furiously. I smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We should just write our papers." He bobbed his head to show his assent and started to scribble furiously. Lucky him. He already had something formulated. I, on the other hand, was still looking down a blank paper.

Claire and Andy had calmed down, by then. They turned back to the front, bent their heads down, and started to scribble.

"C'mon, Sporto," Bender begged in a baby-ish tone. "Level with me. Do you slip her the hot beef injection?"

Simultaneously, Claire's and Andy's heads whipped around in Bender's direction. Shouts of "Enough!" and "Go to hell!" filled the empty library, making the sound bounce around a little louder than necessary.

"Hey!" Mr. Vernon shouted from his office. "What's going on in there?"

Everybody ignored him. Me and Brian heard him mutter "Smug little pricks" distinctly. I looked at Brian for assurance. "Yeah, I heard too," he said, still scribbling away. "Scumbag," Andy muttered. "I agree," I said out loud, making him look back at me and smile shyly. A squeaky sound came out of my mouth and I felt a blush spread from my neck to my cheeks. I was weird that way.

"Oh, so you like him, eh?" Bender said, pointing from me to Andy.

I shook my head furiously.

"Leave her alone, man," Andy mumbled, making me blush a little harder. Andy Clark was standing up for me? That was a first. Maybe this detention was a good thing, after all. "Then, why are you blushing?" Bender asked again, a cheeky grin forming on his face. "It's hot. I have really low tolerance when it comes to lack of coolness," I said lamely.

Low tolerance when it comes to lack of coolness?

Only a nerd like me would come up with a thing like that.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: **I would like to use this opportunity to thank **Blairx6661 **and **Hooker clown in sensible shoes **for taking the time to 'Favorite' and 'Comment' on 'Opposites Attract'. You have no idea how happy you've made me! I love the both of you!

**CHAPTER 3**:

Bender finally gave up on tormenting me after a few minutes. He stood up and walked towards the railing that was nearest to Claire. I had a hunch that he was going to piss her off too. I was right. Or maybe, Bender was just really predictable. I'm going to go with the latter.

"What do you say we close that door? We can't have any kind of party with Vernon checking up on us every five seconds," he said, bobbing his head in the direction of the library door and Mr. Vernon's office. As usual, Brian had to answer. It was probably programmed in his gene pool to answer every single question he heard, whether it was school-related or not. "You know, the door's supposed to stay open…" he started to say, trailing off when I tapped his arm lightly.  
"Just shut up," I whispered under my breath. He blushed and nodded, eyes reverting back to his paper.

Bender, on the other hand, continued to engage in a discussion with me.

"So what?" he asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly.  
"So why don't you just _shut up_! There's five other people in this room, you know?" Andy said grumpily.  
"God! You can count! See, I knew you were smart to be a…" he paused dramatically, "A wrestler," he finished.  
"Who the hell are you to judge, anyway?" Andy muttered, his fist clenching again.  
"Really…." Claire started to scoff.

That's when I blew it. I mean, could you blame me? I hadn't written anything yet because of all the ruckus going around me. And besides, Bender was really starting to piss me off.

"Can all of you just _shut the hell up_?!" I said, glaring at the three of them.

Everybody turned to look at me.

"You guys just don't know _when _to shut the _fuck _up! I haven't written a _single _word because of all this shit you're causing. I mean, this fighting is really exhausting and I'm not even included in this shit!" I screamed, starting to stand up, my fists balled like Andy's.

Bender winked at me.

"Feisty! I like it!" he said.

I held my ground and continued to glare at him, my middle finger threatening to flip him off.

"Jesus, Bender! You'd even hit on a junior, wouldn't you?" Andy said, sticking up for me.  
My cheeks flushed red again.

Bender smirked. "Sporto, you've gotta stop protecting her. Look, if you stand up for her any longer, she's going to turn so red, we wouldn't even be able to distinguish her from her hair anymore."

I scoffed. I noticed that my hands were starting to shake now. Behind me, Allison started to laugh. I turned on her and she immediately recoiled, her face resembling that of a puppy that had just been hit. I gave her a reassuring smile and she returned it shyly.

When I turned around again, Bender was standing in front of me. His arms were crossed over his chest and I copied him. Probably because he was staring at mine.

"What do you want?" I said, glaring at him.  
"Chill, Tomato," he said coolly.  
"Why do you call me 'Tomato'?" I asked, making quotation marks with my fingers when I said the word tomato. Bender reached out and tugged on the end of my braid. I slapped his hand away and laughed. "Because of your hair….Tomato," he teased. "Get lost!" I shouted, shoving him. Hard. He stumbled backwards into the tables in front of us and accidentally pushed it a few feet back, making a loud scraping noise that filled the library.

"Listen to me, you little ass-"

I was cut off when Mr. Vernon walked into the library, his blazer flapping around him. He gave me a look that meant he didn't want any funny business happening in here. "What in the blazes is going in here? Is there a problem, Ms. Crush? Mr. Bender?" he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Bender gave me an amused look.

"Your last name is _Cush_? You do know that _that_ means…"  
"Crush, asshole," I snapped. "And yes. I know what 'cush' means."  
"Language, Ms. Crush," Mr. Vernon warned.

I set my jaw and sat back down, ignoring Brian's murmurs of 'Cool down' and 'Just chill'.  
"I'm warning all of you. If I hear one more noise, you're all going to serve _another_ one next week," Mr. Vernon said, fixing me and Bender with an extra ferocious glare. With another glance at the room, he turned on his heels and was gone.

"You know, Bender, you don't even count. I mean, if you disappeared right now, it wouldn't even matter," Andy said the minute Mr. Vernon disappeared. "You might as well not even exist at this school."

I thought I saw a flash of hurt show briefly in Bender's eyes. But, when I blinked, it was gone. I'd probably imagined it.

"Well, I guess I'll just join the wrestling team," he said, his lips curling into a smirk.

Andy gave Claire a look, which she in turn, gave to me. Somehow, I understood what she was trying to say and both of us burst into a round of giggles.

Bender wasn't used to getting ignored, I guess, because he tried a different approach at once when we started to ignore him. "While I'm at it, maybe I'll join the prep club too! Student body president fits me quite well, don't you think?" he said, preening his jacket and pretending to look posh and snooty.

"They wouldn't take you. Besides, nobody would vote for you even if you were the only person who ran," I sniffed, earning a look of approval from Claire and Andy.  
"Ugh! I'm hurt," Bender said, putting a hand over his heart.

Claire had something to say as well.

"You wanna know why guys like you ruin everything?" Claire said, leaning forward.  
"This should be stunning," Bender muttered under his breath while he rolled his eyes.  
"That's because you're afraid," Claire continued in a determined tone.

An amused smile slowly appeared on Bender's face.

"Oh, God! All of you richies are _so _smart! That's exactly why I'm not heavy in activities," he said. "You big coward," Claire said, rolling her eyes. Brian shifted in his seat and said, "I'm in the math club." Claire ignored Brian and continued her speech, "See, you're afraid they won't take you. You don't belong so you have to dump all over it." Bender pursed his lips and crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, it wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that you people are assholes, now would it?" he asked with one eyebrow raised.

I saw Claire open her mouth to say something, probably something scathing, and intervened.

"You wouldn't know. You don't even know us," I said, gesturing to everybody with one hand. "I don't know any lepers either. But, I'm not going to run out and join any of _their _fucking clubs," he shot back, pretending to look sympathetic for the lepers. "Hey, let's watch the mouth, alright?" Andy said.

"I'm in the Physics club, too," Brian said, trailing off when he realized that everybody was now looking at him.  
"Excuse me for one second." Bender held up an index finger in Claire's direction and nodded at Brian. "What're you babbling about, blondie?" he asked with a puzzled expression on his face. Brian suddenly sat up a lot straighter, like he was proud to have been acknowledged. "Well, what I was saying was that I'm in the Math club, the Latin club, and the Physics club," he answered, counting all of the clubs off on his fingers.

Bender nodded and turned his attention back on Claire.

"Hey, cherry, are _you _in the Physics club?" he asked with one of those stupid smirks on his face.  
"It's an academic club," Claire answered with a dumbfounded look on her face.  
"So?"  
"So, academic clubs aren't the same as other kinds of clubs."

He smirked at Claire and turned back to our table. "Oh, but to dorks like him," he wagged a finger in Brian's direction, "they are. What do you and your nerd buddies do in your clubs?"

"In physics, we talk about physics. Uhm, physics properties?" Brian said lamely, raising his hands while he shrugged.  
"So, it's sorta social. Demented, but, social?" Bender clarified with false interest. "Yeah, well, I guess you could consider it social. I mean, there are other kids in my club and, uh, at the end of the year, we, uh, you know, have a huge banquet at the Hilton," Brian said, nodding his head in Bender's and the other's directions.

"You load up? You party?" Bender asked, grinning as he asked Brian about whether or not he and his friends used drugs and alcohol. I frowned at him for putting Brian under pressure and he just winked at me. Brian, who had been completely oblivious to our little exchange, continued talking. "Well, no. I mean, we don't, uh, we don't get high," he said. Claire nodded in Bender's direction. "Only burners like you get high," she said.

Brian, as usual, didn't notice that nobody was paying any attention to him.

"And, uh, I didn't have any shoes. So, I had to borrow my dad's. It was kinda weird because my Mom doesn't let me wear other people's shoes," he paused, "Uh, my cousins, Kent and Kendall, from, uh, Indiana..._They _got high once and, you know, he started eating really weird food. And, uh, and then he felt like he didn't belong anywhere. You know, like, you know '_Twilight __Zon__e_' kinda," Brian finished.

I giggled and nodded my head in Bender's direction. "Sounds a lot like you," I said, making Claire and Brian snicker a little. "Look, I don't mean to break up your little discussion or anything, but you guys keep up your talking, Vernon's gonna come right in here. I've got a meet this coming Saturday and I'm not going to miss it on account of you, boneheads," Andy growled, glaring particularly at Bender.

Bender, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed at all. He sighed and fixed Andy with a 'sad' look. "Missing a whole wrestling meet! Oh, the pain!" he said. I bit my lip and tried to fight a laugh back. Andy, on the other hand, wasn't so amused. "Well, you wouldn't know anything about it, faggot! You've never competed in your entire life!" Andy boomed. "Oh, I know! I feel all empty inside because of it. I have such a deep admiration for guys who roll around on the floor with other guys," Bender said, pretending to be hurt.

"Boys, can you just chi-"  
Andy cut me off. "Ah, you'd never miss it. You don't have any goals."  
Claire coughed and cleared her throat, but the pair simply ignored her.  
"Oh, but I do!" Bender said a little too enthusiastically.  
"Yeah?" Andy asked, eyebrows raised.  
"I wanna be just-like-_you_. I figured all I need is a lobotomy and some tights."

The tension in the room immediately disappeared. I could see Brian, Claire, and Allison trying to hold back a laugh. Finally, I cracked. "You wear tights?" I asked in between giggles. "No, I don't wear tights. I wear the required uniform," Andy corrected me, his lips pulling up at the edges. I blushed and looked away. Luckily, Brian diverted the attention away from me and kept the ball rolling. "Tights," Brian pointed out, shrugging. "Shut up!" Andy said rather defensively. Bender narrowed his eyes and pretended to be serious. "You know, you're pretty sexy when you're angry."

He started to walk towards Claire's and Andy's table. That's when we heard Mr. Vernon's footsteps echoing in the hallways. The rebel immediately took a seat between Claire and Andy. He folded his hands on the desk and pretended to look 'innocent', just in case Mr. Vernon _did _come in. When the footsteps receded, Bender stood up and ran towards the door.

"You know, there's not supposed to be any monkey business!" I warned in a soft voice so that Mr. Vernon wouldn't hear. "Young lady, have you finished your paper?" he asked me in an impersonation of Mr. Vernon's voice. I laughed and Bender winked at me, making another blush creep up my cheeks.

Luckily, Bender was too preoccupied with doing something to the door to notice.

I scrunched down in my seat and rubbed my cheeks, as if that would somehow make the blush go away.

This couldn't be happening, could it?

Or was it? Was I falling for Bender?

* * *

**A/N:** Whew! Longest chapter yet! Hope you guys like it!


	5. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4:**

RECAP:

_"You know, there's not supposed to be any monkey business!" I warned in a soft voice so that Mr. Vernon wouldn't hear. "Young lady, have you finished your paper?" he asked me in an impersonation of Mr. Vernon's voice. I laughed and Bender winked at me, making another blush creep up my cheeks._

_Luckily, Bender was too preoccupied with doing something to the door to notice._

_I scrunched down in my seat and rubbed my cheeks, as if that would somehow make the blush go away._

_This couldn't be happening, could it?_

_Or was it? Was I falling for Bender?_

__

Bender poked his head out of the open door, looking from left to right a couple of times.

"What're you going to do?" I said as loudly as I could without attracting Vernon's attention. "Drop dead, I hope," Andy answered, smirking at me. As expected, I could feel my cheeks turning hot and I ducked my head. "Sporto, what did I say about flirting with Tomato? Sooner or later, all of the blood will stay in her head and she'll explode into a million pieces. Which would be gross," Bender said from his place near the door.

Andy rolled his eyes. "Whatever, you asshole," I said, crossing my arms over my chest. I looked up, only to see Andy smiling at me. I did my best to smile back, but felt my cheeks flush harder and looked down.

Was I dreaming? Was _Andrew Clark _flirting _and _standing up for me? I mean, I appreciated it, but the fact that Bender somewhat flirted with me too made everything a little confusing.

I shook my head to clear it and continued to scribble on my paper. That is, until the library door slammed shut, filling the cavernous library with echoes.

"That's very funny. Fix it, c'mon!" Andy said sarcastically.  
"You should _really _fix that," Brian all but pleaded.  
"Am I a genius?" Bender asked, scoffing, a pleased look on his face.  
"No. You're an asshole," I snapped at him.  
"What a funny girl," he said to me.  
"Just fix the damned door, Bender!" Claire screamed at him, her expression scared.

I don't blame her. After all, if Bender got us in more trouble, we'd probably be spending more quality time with each other next Saturday.

"Everybody just _ssshhhhh_!" Bender retorted.

I heard footsteps approaching and my eyes widened.

"Uh, guys-" I warned, but they ignored me.

"Look, I've been here before. I know what I'm doing," Bender said, glaring at Andy.

"No. Fix the door. Get up there and fix it," Andy snarled.

"Shut up!" Bender screamed.

"God dammit!" Mr. Vernon's voice said from outside.

I cleared their throat to catch their attention. "I tried to warn you, guys," I pointed out, shrugging.

After a few seconds of scuffling outside, Mr. Vernon walked into the library. Or, rather, _fumed_ into the library would be a more appropriate term.

"Why is that door closed?" he boomed.

None of us spoke.

"WHY IS THAT DOOR CLOSED?!" he asked.

"How are we supposed to know? We're not supposed to move, right?" Bender said innocently, his hands folded on his desk and his eyes staring downwards.  
"WHY?" Mr. Vernon tried again, staring at Claire this time.  
"We were just sitting here. Like we were supposed to?" she answered, shrugging a little.

Mr. Vernon took a few steps forward and turned his eyes on mine and Brian's table.

"Who closed that door?" he said, looking at me and Brian. I shook my head to show that I didn't know anything about it. Unfortunately, as I have mentioned earlier, Brian was programmed to answer every question thrown his way. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him slowly opening his mouth to answer.  
Luckily, Bender saw it too and spoke before he could.

"I think a screw fell out of it," he said, still looking innocent.  
"It just closed, sir," Andy muttered.

"Who?!" Mr. Vernon asked.

Behind me, Allison squeaked, then came the sound of somebody hitting his/her head on a desk. I turned around and saw that I was right. Her head was planted firmly on her desk, her black parka's hood covering her face completely. She continued to make squeaking sounds. Like a mouse that had been cornered by a cat and was about to be shredded into Mouse Kibble.

Sorry. Disturbing reference.

Anyway, getting back to the story:

I cleared my throat and pulled Mr. Vernon's attention away from her. "She doesn't talk, sir," I said as Allison continued to squeak behind me.

Mr. Vernon's eyes narrowed. "Give me that screw, Crush," he said. My eyes widened and I had the sudden urge to do what Allison had just done. "I don't have it, Sir," I said, shaking my head for effect. "She doesn't have it, sir," Andy put in.

I was too nervous to blush.

"Sporto's right, sir. Tomato here doesn't have it," Bender said. Mr. Vernon whipped around to look at Bender. While his back was turned, I looked at Andy and mouthed, "_Thanks_". He nodded and turned around to face the front again.

"Give me that screw, Bender."

"I don't have it! Screws fall out all the time. The world's an imperfect place."

"_Give _it to me, Bender."

"Excuse me, sir. But, why would anybody want to steal a screw?" Claire covered for Bender.

"Watch it, young lady," Mr. Vernon said, pointing an accusing finger at Claire.

I saw her and Bender exchange a look and I smiled.

The _princess _and the _rebel _sharing a look? Interesting.

Mr. Vernon walked towards the door, grabbing a chair in the process.

"The door's _way_ too heavy, sir," Bender said conscendingly.

As usual, our _darling _principal (Note the sarcasm, peeps.) ignored him and went ahead and placed a chair in front of the door anyway.

The minute he let go, the door held for a few minutes, before it slammed shut loudly, knocking the chair out of the way.

"God dammit!" we heard Mr. Vernon cuss outside the door.

All of us snickered and waited for Mr. Vernon to make his grand entrance again.

When he did, he snapped his fingers and pointed at Andy.

"Andrew Clark! Get up here," he ordered.

When Andy didn't move, he said much more impatiently, "C'mon. Front and center! Let's go!"

Andy muttered something indecipherable under his breath and walked towards the door. I could tell, with the way he held himself, that he was trying hard not to roll his eyes.

"Hey, how come Andrew gets to get up?" Bender whined. "If he gets up, we'll get up! It'll be anarchy!"

I snorted quietly. From beside me, Brian tried to fight a smile back as well.

I watched as Mr. Vernon and Andy put a steel magazine rack in front of the library door. I couldn't help but notice how toned Andy's arms looked and how strong he was. The mere thought sent me blushing again.

"Okay. Watch the magazines," Mr. Vernon ordered. "It's out of my hands," Bender mumbled. Suddenly, his face lightened up, as if he'd just had an idea. Probably something about what insult he was going to use next. "That's very clever, sir," he said, just as Andy and Mr. Vernon finished putting the rack in front of the door. "But, what if there's a fire? I think violating fire codes and endangering the lives of children would be unwise at this junction in your career, sir."

Brian, as usual, piped up. "You know, the school comes equipped with fire exits at either end of the library."

At the front, Mr. Vernon seemed to be thinking about what Bender had just said. When he realized that he was wrong, he clapped his fingers together and put the blame on Andy. "Alright, what are you doing with this? Get this out of here for God's sake! What's the matter with you? Come on!" he said.

Beside me, Bender and Brian were still bantering.

"Show Dick some respect!" Bender said, pretending to 'respect' our dear principal (Still using sarcasm).

"Let's go. Go! Back to your seat," Mr. Vernon ordered, pushing Andy along a little bit. When Andy had settled in, Mr. Vernon put his hands on his hips and glared at him. "I expected more from a varsity letterman."

I couldn't help it. I stood up and said what was on my mind:

"It wasn't his fault, _dick_. You were the one who insisted on putting the stupid magazine rack in front of the door."

Mr. Vernon glared at me and started to walk towards me. For the first time since I'd entered the library, I was glad Bender spoke up at this exact moment:

"Oh, come on, dick! Don't scold our Tomato here!" he said. I smiled at him in gratitude and took my seat.

I heard a _psst!_ sound and looked around for the source. It was Andy. He mouthed, _'Thanks'_, and winked at me. I smiled at him and nodded.

"You're not fooling anybody, Bender. The next screw that falls out is gonna be you," Mr. Vernon said pompously, turning around to leave us alone again.

Fortunately, Bender wasn't finished.

"Eat my shorts," he mumbled under his breath.

Mr. Vernon whipped around and walked towards him again. "What was that?" he asked in a dangerous tone. "EAT. MY. SHORTS," Bender clarified, clearly unfazed.

"You just bought yourself another Saturday, mister."

"Oh, Christ."

"You just bought one more right there."

"Well, I'm free the Saturday after that. Beyond that, I'll have to check my calendar."

"Good! Because it's going to be filled. We'll keep going. You want another one? Say the word! Say the word! Instead of going to prison, you'll come here! Are you through?"

"No."

"I'm doing society a favor!"

"So?"

"That's another one, right now! I've got you for the rest of your natural-born life if you don't watch your step. You want another one?"

"Yes!"

"You got it! You got another one! Right there! That's another one, pal!"

"Cut it out!" Claire intervened.

She and Bender exchanged another of their 'looks', Claire mouthing '_Stop!_' while she still had his attention.

"You through?" Mr. Vernon asked Bender.

"Not. Even. Close, _bud_," Bender responded sarcastically.

"Good. You got one more. Right there."

"You really think I give a shit?"

"Another. You through?"

"How many is that?"

"That's seven, including the one when we first came in and asked Mr. Vernon here if Barry Manilow raids his closet," Brian said, holding up seven fingers.

"Now, it's eight. You stay out of this," Mr. Vernon said, pointing at Brian.

"Excuse me, sir, it's seven-"

"Shut up, Peewee!" He turned back to Bender. "You're mine, Bender. For two months. I gotcha. I gotcha!"

"What can I say? I'm _thrilled_," Bender said sarcastically, as Mr. Vernon walked out of the library, making a 'Rock On' sign that supposedly signaled the number '2'.

"OH, I'm sure that's exactly what you want these people to believe. You know something, Bender? You ought to spend a little more time trying to do something with yourself and a little less time trying to impress people. You might be better off," Mr. Vernon lectured.

He turned to us.

"Alright, that's it. I'm going to be right outside those doors. The next time I have to come in here, I'm cracking skulls!"

While Mr. Vernon said '_I'm cracking skulls!_', Bender was mouthing them as well. A signal that he _did _spend a little too much time in detention with the man he so obviously hated.

Mr. Vernon walked out of the library.

The minute the door closed, Bender shouted, "FUCK YOU!"

I whistled lowly and checked my watch and groaned when I saw the time. It was only a quarter to eight? Surely, it couldn't be! What with all of the 'excitement' that had already happened?

I looked at what the others were doing:

Bender was lighting a cigarette. The only thing was, he was lighting it with a match he struck using the sole of his shoe as a strikeboard.

Andy was messing with his sweater (May I mention that he looked _absolutely _cute?).

Claire was resting her face on her hands, staring off into space, her eyes wandering and taking in the entire library.

Allison was drawing something.

Brian was adjusting his _friend _down below.

I sighed and reached into my bag, pulling out my headphones to pass the time. After all, Mr. Vernon didn't say anything about not using gadgets, right?

I put them over my ears and pressed 'Play'.

Simple Minds' _Don't you (Forget about me) _flowed into my ears, making me relax and scrunch down into my seat. What can I say? The song was my favorite.

I leaned forward, made a pillow out of my arms, and tried to go to sleep.

Unfortunately, it was completely uncomfortable. I winced when I pressed my forehead a little too hard into my wristbones and straightened up.

"Here. Use this," a voice said. I looked to my right and saw Andy offering me his varsity jacket. "You wanted to sleep, right? Use my jacket as a pillow. It's soft, promise. And you'll be a lot more comfortable."

Brian had the good sense to stand up and get the jacket for me, shaping it into a comfortable-looking shape and putting in the spot where I'd put my head if I _was_ going to sleep.

I looked at it as if it were a dissected frog. To tell you guys honestly, I was having a party mentally. My heart was doing the conga, the samba, and the Macarena all at the same time. Which is pretty hard, considering all the booty-shaking I'd have to do.

"Go ahead, Ariel. Sleep. We won't tell on you," Claire reassured me, smiling at me and gesturing to Andy's jacket.

"Why are you so nice to me?" I asked her and Andy. "Because you're letting us," Claire replied, laughing a little. I chuckled as well and nodded, leaning forward again and using Andy's jacket as a pillow.

The last thing I heard before I fell asleep was, "Don't drool on it!" I laughed and said rather sleepily, "I won't."

And, on that happy note, I sank into dreamland.


End file.
